I am pleased to announce that the request for proposals for ANR’s 2013 competitive grants program will be released this summer. Tentatively, we are expecting a new call in May or June.

Taking into consideration several comments, we have made a significant change to this year’s competitive grants proposal process. While the proposal solicitation and peer review processes will remain similar to former years, we will enable PIs to select a start date from two possible timeframes (April 2014 or August 2014). The flexibility in start dates is to provide the time needed to find graduate students and modify project goals to align with seasonal considerations and to facilitate the collaboration between PIs and partners, both internal and external. We also have heard about the desire for a different type of feedback on non-funded proposals and will work with ANR Program Council to discuss this request.

ANR will continue to invest in research, education and outreach projects to support high-priority issues that are consistent with the Strategic Vision; encourage collaboration among academics; support short-term, high-impact projects; strengthen the research-extension continuum; and contribute policy-relevant outcomes that address significant statewide agricultural, economic, environmental and social issues in California.

While the funds available for the competitive grants program will depend on a number of factors, we anticipate funding to be roughly the same as last year. We are committed to providing as much support as feasible to address high-priority issues.